


Of Seraphs and Men

by Daksgirl



Series: Seraphs Series [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Dysfunctional Family, Family Drama, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-20
Updated: 2012-05-20
Packaged: 2017-11-05 17:03:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/408867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daksgirl/pseuds/Daksgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gabriel has never had to deal with such a troublesome fledgling before. Heaven help him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Archiving my stories from FF.net. A family fic from Gabriel's POV, leading up to the show. I use the term 'seraph' to mean young angel (not mature yet), same goes for 'fledgling'. I'm just gonna misuse the HELL out of those words ok? In my head all the angels look like their hosts, and kid Castiel is like a mini Jimmy. I know that probably doesn't work in real life but pshhh this is fanfic yo.

"Castiel!"

The voice boomed out over heaven, and angels paused in their everyday activities to listen, before casting amused glances at each other, some shaking their heads in exasperation as a worried figure flitted by them.

"Oh  _Father_ , where has that little seraph gotten to…"

He had searched  _everywhere._  In the holy garden, where he had to face a rather bemused Joshua, along the alabaster corridors of the library full of texts that had yet to be written, the armory (weapons wouldn't be invented for a good couple of million years, but for some reason Michael  _insisted_  they have one), heck he'd even dared a peek into Raphael's nest before nearly getting barbequed by lightning.

Raphael could be such a miserable grump in the morning.

Angels blinked and murmured in disapproving tones as he passed by in a flurry of agitated feathers. Archangels weren't often seen out and amongst the rest of the lower ranking angels, but Gabriel seemed to be a constant presence among them. He was usually looking for something. Or perhaps more specifically,  _someone_.

He accidentally disturbed a choir of cupids practicing their praises, and there was a great din of outraged squeals and screeches as the cherubs flapped their little wings in agitation, pages of music scattering and harps twanging.

"Gabriel!"

"Well I  _never_ -"

"Shoot, I had just gotten it right too…"

"Now now, let's try it again!"

Gabriel smiled apologetically, skirting around them as they bickered, hurrying away. A female angel with beautiful deep indigo wings passed him, chuckling and shaking her head.

"Lost your little charge again Gabriel?" she asked bemusedly, even giving him a wink.

The archangel smiled sheepishly, shrugging. "What can I say, Hael? That kid has a mind of his own. I look away for a moment and poof! He's off."

The angel jerked her head behind her, wings angling the same direction with a delicate rustle. "You might be in luck. I saw a certain seraph skipping off in that direction. I think he wants to see the Ocean again."

Gabriel grinned, brushing the tip of a wing to hers thankfully. "Many thanks, sister."

Hael turned out to be right; a few moments later Gabriel spotted a very familiar figure and the archangel froze, eyes wide.

"Castiel!"

The fledgling was balancing precariously at the very edge of a wispy cloud, peering over the edge curiously at the Earth below. Gabriel nearly had a heart attack as the little angel toppled forward, tiny wings flapping furiously and arms pin wheeling. Gabriel shot forward in a flurry of wings, managing to grab a fistful of gossamer tunic as he pulled Castiel back from the edge.

"What are you doing?" he tried to yell, but his voice came out more of a breathless squeak as he dragged his little brother away from the edge by an arm. "You almost fell!"

Gabriel had never had to deal with such a troublesome fledgling before. To be honest, he hadn't really dealt with  _any_  fledglings before. It had always been left to some of the other, lower-ranking angels like Laliah or Jophiel to keep an eye on the young ones, and for a good reason; archangels weren't exactly known for their amazing parenting skills. The Morningstar frequently just forgot that he was supposed to be watching them, Michael scared them with his booming voice and fiery wings, and Raphael….well she was  _terrible_  with kids. Last fledgling she had raised had been Zachariah, and everyone agreed  _that_ had been a huge mistake.

But Castiel was different, the last angel to be born.

Gabriel still remembered it. He had been talking with Anael at the time, in the hushed corridors of the library. Michael had nearly set fire to the place as he flew in, a whirlwind of anxious energy and impatience, sending pages of parchment fluttering through the air. A tiny little bundle had been roughly thrust into Gabriel's surprised arms, Michael's face thunderous.

 _"Raise him, Gabriel,"_  his brother had grunted.  _"This is the last to be born, as Father has decreed. I entrust him to you."_

No amount of protesting had done him any good, Michael had been adamant. It was nearly unheard of; an archangel playing wet nurse to a fledgling, but reluctantly Gabriel had obeyed. He didn't really understand it, but if it was Father's will, then so be it.

Sometimes he thought Father had a very sick sense of humor.

The little angel dropped his eyes, toes fidgeting at the cloud beneath them. Judging by the wobbling of that lower lip, Gabriel was going to have a crying Castiel on his hands in the next few minutes if he wasn't careful.

"M' curious. Wanna see."

 _Oh no, no not the look_. Sure enough, the little seraph risked a glance upwards, eyes wide and just beginning to water.

Gabriel felt himself deflate, his wings sinking. He was such a sucker for the dejected look. It was the eyes. Castiel's grace was so very bright, it seemed to constantly be trying to escape, to force it's way out of his tiny body through the only window it could find; his eyes. It swirled there now, a beautiful cerulean blue. Gabriel sometimes joked that it was that color because Castiel stared at the Ocean too much.

The fledgling was  _obsessed_  with the idea of life in the Ocean. Gabriel had to fly him into the water to explore and chase fish at least once a day, if not more. Gabriel figured it didn't hurt anyone, and it wasn't like Plesiosaurs were around yet, so there wasn't anything too big that might eat the little runt. _Yet_.

"See what? You can't fly yet you little beast, you know that," he said more gently, large wings arching forward to brush against his charge comfortingly, reassuring himself the little seraph was ok.

Castiel's fluttered in response, tiny feathers touching Gabriel's long brown ones timidly. All fledglings had wings, but they couldn't fly until they saw their first millennium at least, sometimes even longer than that. Castiel's were still just baby down, eventually he would grow his flight feathers, and then he would start training with Saraphiel. Gabriel found himself looking forward to that; watching the little angel spread his tiny glossy black wings and take his first flight.

As hard as he tried to stay angry, it was impossible with Castiel. All in all, the little squirt was adorable, and Gabriel never managed to stay angry for very long. That's probably why Castiel got away with a lot more than the other older fledglings did. Gabriel was such a pushover.

Those little black wings flapped experimentally, and Castiel looked up at his brother, eyes shining, tantrum suddenly averted.

"Anael said…said fish is gonna come out f' the ocean. It's gonna  _walk_. Wanna see it." His wings drooped a little. "Can't see from'ere."

Gabriel smiled, ruffling his wings against Castiel's affectionately. "I'll take you to see it kiddo,  _if_  you stop running off."

Castiel grinned happily, slipping a tiny hand in Gabriel's and following the angel willingly. Gabriel retraced his frantic flight from earlier as Castiel skipped alongside.

"When?" he asked, little hand tightening in Gabriel's as they passed by the still bickering cupids. "When we gonna see fish?"

Gabriel stifled a sigh, shooting a smile down at the little seraph. "Soon, Castiel."

In the beginning Gabriel had tried to put Castiel in with the other fledglings under Anael's care, but the little seraph had just cried and cried until Gabriel, at his wits end, tucked the little one into his own nest, lined with soft wisps of cloud. He had promptly stopped crying at that, snuggling into Gabriel's arms happily and hugging the archangel's offered wing. Since then Gabriel had spent many nights with sticky feathers. Unfortunately, as is the way of most young things, Castiel loved chewing on them.

Gabriel's nest was close to the other archangels', and as they neared, Raphael poked an irritable head out of her own, eyes narrowing as she noticed them approach.

An angel's nest is incredibly personal to the individual, taking the shape and form of whatever they so chose. Raphael had chosen a storm cloud to line her own and it rumbled aggressively as she straightened, wings stretching irritably.

Raphael was testy even on a good day. Why she was considered the angel of healing and love was beyond Gabriel, yet another testament to Father's twisted sense of humor no doubt.

"Finally found the little monster?" she grumbled, eyes sharp as they landed on Castiel. The fledgling shrunk away from her, burying his face against Gabriel's leg as the archangel pulled him a little closer. He squeezed the small hand in his reassuringly, smiling over at his irritable sister.

"He just wanted to see the Ocean. No harm done," he chirped cheerfully.

Raphael snorted, ivory wings shifting restlessly as she stretched. Thunder rumbled around her. How she could actually  _enjoy_ all that racket, let alone sleep in it, he'd never know.

"There's  _always_ harm done when Castiel is involved," she said snidely, her wings shivering slightly in quiet amusement at her own joke. Gabriel's eyes flashed, wings bristling with indignation as he stiffened. Castiel clung harder to his leg, little fingers digging bruises as he attempted to hide his whole being inside Gabriel.

"Just what are you-" Raphael cut him off with a wave of her hand, motioning him away with a bored expression.

"Save it Gabriel. Get the little terror back to the nest, Lucifer is on the tirade again."

As if to prove her right, a loud voice boomed across heaven; startling some other angels nearby, who's wings poofed in alarm, reaching some rather hilarious dimensions.  _Michael._

An answering rumble could be felt underfoot as the voice echoed away, accompanied by a sudden burst of lightning, and Gabriel rolled his eyes.  _Lucifer._

Castiel unglued himself long enough to peer around Gabriel's legs towards the noise, temporarily ignoring his fear of Raphael.

"Mornin'star wants to see the fish too?" he asked hopefully. Raphael guffawed loudly, and the seraph dove for cover behind Gabriel again.

"Oh isn't he just  _precious,_ " she sneered, hooting with laughter at Gabriel's thunderous look.

Scowling angrily at the heartily amused Raphael, Gabriel turned, starting towards his own nest. Castiel refused to give up his death grip on his one leg though, and he ended up indignantly hobbling away as Raphael worked herself into a hysterical laughing fit.

Ushering Castiel into the nest, Gabriel was relieved to find all was quiet, Michael and Lucifer's arguing muffled. Gabriel gratefully sank down into the soft downy cloud, wriggling contentedly. Below them stretched the endless Ocean that Castiel was so obsessed over, above them a dark glittering sky with bright constellations. Gabriel had fashioned the nest so the fledgling could look at both safely without the danger of falling. Often Gabriel would lie on his back, Castiel a warm weight on his chest as they traced the stars and constellations together, safe in their nest.

Gabriel came back to himself as Castiel snuggled up against his side, little feet and hands cold against his skin, and the archangel affectionately crooked a wing around the tiny seraph.

"It was a nice thought kiddo. But I don't think Lucifer wants to see the fish today. He's busy."

Castiel shifted against him, little hand grabbing a fistful of feathers and rubbing his cheek against them. He had done it since he was born, and though it was uncomfortable, the fledgling seemed to take comfort from it, so Gabriel allowed it.

Pushover. That's all he was.

There was a sad sniffle, and Gabriel felt a slight wetness against his feathers. "He's always busy.  _Always_  arguing." Gabriel ran his hands down Castiel's back soothingly as the seraph hiccupped, sniffling slightly. "Don't like it."

Gabriel sighed, fingers smoothing down the soft baby down of the little angel's wings.

"No-one likes it," he murmured. "But they'll sort it out eventually. They always do."

Apparently comfort time was over, Castiel clambered into Gabriel's lap in a heavy heap of stubby limbs and feathers, winding him as little feet caught him in the stomach.

"Take me to see fish," the seraph demanded, eyes determined and arms crossed. Gabriel managed to catch his breath again, shaking his head and chuckling.

"Stubborn aren't you? Not yet, Castiel. Why don't we go see what Balthazar and Uriel are up to huh?"

The two fledglings were only a few centuries older, the closest siblings Castiel had to his own age. Castiel crossed his arms with a pout, little nose scrunching up in distaste, and tears gone as quickly as they came.

"Don't wanna. Uriel called me a bad word."

Gabriel could imagine that. "Did he now? And what was that?" But Castiel merely pursed his lips, shaking his head stubbornly.

Gabriel snapped his fingers. "Hey, why don't we go find the Metatron? I bet he'll have some fun stories for us."

Castiel sighed in a rather dramatic way, falling forward to sullenly bury his face in his older brother's chest, muffling his voice. "He's  _loud_."

It took all of Gabriel's willpower to not roll his eyes. "Well that's kinda the point…"

His only answer was the stubborn shake of a small head against his chest. There was just no pleasing this kid.

Thunder rumbled through heaven again, making even Gabriel's nest shudder, and Gabriel cast a worried glance outside.  _They were really at it today_. Gabriel could hear the indignant squawking of Raphael as she was jostled in her own nest, and managed a secretive smile.  _Serves you right._

Castiel fingers were bordering on painful as they dug into his wings, the seraph's own trembling and quivering. Gabriel sighed heavily.

"Alright. Let's go see the fish," he gave in begrudgingly.

So Gabriel took him to see the stupid fish. Little brat nearly stepped on it.

**....**

Gabriel gazed out over the sunny plain, stretching his wings wide and enjoying the sun. A gentle breeze rustled the grasses, and the archangel stretched his wings wider; enjoying the caress against his feathers.

Castiel was nearby, crouched low to the ground studying something on a blade of grass. He was murmuring to it, and satisfied the fledgling wasn't in any immediate danger of getting into trouble, Gabriel let his gaze drift.

Anael was further out on the plain, russet wings folded primly against her back as she gestured towards a grazing herd nearby for the young ones in front of her. She was the closest to what heaven had to a schoolteacher, and taught the fledglings about the world, heaven and earth.

Well, the older ones at least, Castiel was still too young, and if he had to admit it, Gabriel kind of wanted to teach the fledgling those things himself.

A bored looking Balthazar stood by her side, eyes cast to the skies as Anael held firmly onto one arm, preventing the young angel from wandering off. Balthazar was known for sneaking off during lessons, often taking other fledglings with him and Gabriel knew it drove Anael crazy. Now and then the scholarly angel would say something to him and he'd roll his eyes, pointedly ignoring her.

 _Ah teenagers,_  Gabriel mused.  _Not looking forward to that stage with you Castiel._

A smaller angel broke off from the small gaggle of fledglings, picking a stick up off the ground. Gabriel snorted as he recognized the dappled grey wings that twitched and fluttered in barely repressed excitement.  _Virgil._

The little mischief maker started to prowl forward towards Anael, the female angel's attention having been distracted by a disagreement between Uriel and Rachel. It seemed the little female seraph had grown bored by the lesson as well, she was attempting to drag a very unwilling Uriel to see something hidden from Gabriel's view.

Sensing his time of victory was near Virgil lunged forward with a battle cry, tapping Anael on one wing with his stick and startling her enough that she released her grip on Balthazar.

The two promptly took off into the grasses with whoops of pleasure, giggling madly and wings fluttering as Anael gave chase with an angry shout. Sensing their freedom as well, the other fledglings promptly scattered in all directions, and their squeals of happiness echoed over the plain. The sound startled a nearby herd of grazing Dinocerata, and the beasts stampeded away with irritable bleats.

Gabriel chuckled as several other angels struggled to get the fledglings under control. He should probably help but…this was just too fun.

Raphael was watching the proceedings with a scowl, as per usual. She was perched on higher ground, overlooking them all and keeping an eye out for danger. Zachariah lurked in her shadow, and she turned to him, murmuring something in a tone too low for Gabriel to hear. Solemnly the younger angel nodded, and then promptly re-appeared in the middle of the chaos. The fledglings weren't impressed with his barks for order, Rachel kicking him in the shin and another fledgling sticking a tongue out at him, much to Gabriel's joy.

Michael was no-where to be seen, but that wasn't unusual. The archangel didn't really understand fledglings very well, their boisterous energy too much for his strict solemn personality. Fledgling-watching duty was always handed to Gabriel, and he didn't mind too much; the little ones were fun, and made a nice change to the boring monotony that could be heaven.

The fledglings were still scattered and unruly when Lucifer landed in the middle of the plain, his wings a graceful blaze against the blue sky. Abandoning their play and exasperated keepers, all the young ones flocked to him with happy squeals, little wings flapping excitedly. With his easy charisma and natural beauty, Lucifer was a favorite of the young ones.

The archangel patted Uriel's head fondly, saying something to the adoring flock. Gabriel caught a glimpse of burnt sepia wings, and grimaced to himself. _Great, the creeper has arrived…_

Azazel followed the Morningstar closely, the older seraph quiet and sullen, ignoring his younger siblings as they milled around him. Gabriel had never really taken to Azazel. He was never very far from Lucifer's side, and never said much, he just…stared.  _A lot_. It was creepy.

Anael returned, expression harassed and hair flying. In each hand she held the tip of a wing, and she shook the troublemakers sternly. Balthazar and Virgil squirmed, flapping their free wings defiantly, but quieting down as they noticed the Morningstar.

Anael nodded thankfully to Lucifer, shooing her now more subdued class back to their lesson. Lucifer watched them with an amused smile, before noticing Gabriel. He smiled softly, walking through the tall golden grasses towards his brother.

"Greetings Gabriel. It is good to see you."

Gabriel smiled back as his brother approached. It wasn't often Lucifer was seen around, especially without Michael. It was a nice change.

"Hello to you too. You're quite the celebrity round here I see."

The Morningstar paused a few yards away, eyes trained on Castiel, still playing in the grass.

"So it would seem," he murmured quietly.

Gabriel could see now, Castiel had caught a dragonfly. The young angel held the insect up towards the sun, beaming at it happily and oblivious to his audience. He cupped a small hand around it, leaning his face close to the resting insect.

"And when you get there, tell Father that. I think He'll want to know," he whispered.

Opening his hand wider, he blew gently on the emerald green dragonfly. Its iridescent wings shivered, and after a slight hesitation, it set off into the air with a thrumming buzz.

There was something unreadable in Lucifer's eyes as he watched the insect disappear into the blue sky.

"Tell him what Castiel?" the archangel asked, his wings twitching slightly.

The seraph froze, eyes widening as he noticed the archangel, and Gabriel had to suppress a smile. Poor Castiel. Like the other fledglings he adored Lucifer, but was too shy and in awe of the archangel to actually talk to him. Any times the two did interact, Castiel had just gawped in horrified awe before scuttling away to hide somewhere.

Gabriel took pity on him. "Castiel told the dragonfly to take a message to Father." Gabriel shifted his sun-warmed wings, sighing happily. "About how beautiful Earth is, right kiddo?"

In a blink, Castiel darted towards the safety of Gabriel's spread wings, curling under them and peering nervously out at Lucifer.

The Morningstar smiled at the shy youngster, but it didn't reach his eyes. It made Gabriel sit up a little straighter, the edges of his good mood dissolving into sharp shards of unease. Lucifer was up to something.

"You enjoying the day Castiel?" Azazel was staring at the seraph as well, eyes hard and intimidating. Luckily Castiel was too preoccupied with Lucifer to notice, but Gabriel did. His wings puffed slightly in warning, and noticing, Azazel dropped his gaze, staring at the ground instead.

Castiel was nodding shyly, still peering out from between Gabriel's long feathers, and Gabriel was suddenly seized with the ridiculous urge to hide him from view, to wrap his charge in his wings and just fly away. Away from  _Lucifer_.

The Morningstar straightened, sharing a look with Azazel at his side as the archangel turned away.

"Better enjoy it while you can," Lucifer shook his head sadly, ignoring Gabriel's sharp look, and smirking at Azazel. "After all, mankind will destroy it all before long."

Azazel's wings shook with mirth as the two moved away, Gabriel glaring after them.  _I forgot how dickish you can be Luc. Problems with Michael again?_

Small fingers were tugging on his wing, and Gabriel looked back down to find those huge blue eyes looking at him worriedly.

"What did he mean?" Castiel asked fearfully. "Mankind? Are they bad Gabriel?"

Gabriel shook his head, pulling the fledgling closer to him and chucking him gently under the chin.

"No, nothing like that. Lucifer was just…joking."  _Yeah right._  "Something wonderful is coming Castiel. Something Father has planned for a very long time."

The little seraph cocked his head to the side curiously. "Mankind?"

Gabriel nodded. "Humans. Men. Women. Children. Creatures like us, but they won't have wings, or powers. Father's greatest creation."

The little angel smiled slyly, eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"Even greater than you?"

Gabriel knew that look. He had seen it mirrored back at him after Raphael had found her nest had been occupied by a family of extinct Pterodactyls that had no business being in heaven. Balthazar had been quick enough to get off the scene before being busted, but Castiel hadn't. Gabriel had tried to scold the unrepentant seraph under Raphael's furious gaze, but it was such a good prank he had mostly just wheezed and choked with repressed laughter instead.

That look meant Castiel was joking.

Gabriel laughed, grabbing the little angel and tickling his sides mercilessly. Castiel's peals of laughter drew the attention of some of the other angels, who shook their heads in disapproval, but Gabriel didn't care.

**....**

He wondered if it said something about him, that he seemed to be constantly losing his charge.

This time Gabriel found him in the garden. Joshua had simply jerked his head towards a large oak tree with a quiet and knowing smile, and Gabriel found the young seraph huddled beneath it, wings drawn around him like a protective cocoon.

"Hey kiddo."

Castiel didn't move at his approach, staring sullenly straight ahead, chin propped on his knees.

Gabriel settled down behind him, reaching his hand out to run his fingers soothingly through the long ebony flight feathers that had finally come through. They were a glorious inky black, and Gabriel groomed them gently as they sat there in silence. Finally Castiel shifted slightly, and Gabriel paused his grooming.

"They say I'm a freak," Castiel muttered, eyes watching a butterfly as it flapped its way past the two angels towards a flower.

Gabriel snorted, smoothing down the wings that had started to twitch in agitation under his hands.

"Who did? Uriel? You know he's just tying to get a rise out of you Castiel."

The young angel shook his head angrily, wings beginning to puff. "Everyone thinks so. They don't even have to  _say_  it."

"And what makes you think that?" Gabriel tugged a loose feather free, causing the young angel to jerk slightly. Apologetically he soothed the feathers back into place with gentle strokes.

Castiel sighed, his wings drooping. "We were studying the humans. There was this family….they just had a baby and it was all red and screaming. I was curious, so I asked if we came out like that too." He huffed angrily. "Micah yelled that I ask too many  _questions_ , asked me why I couldn't be like everyone else and just  _accept_  things. So I asked him why it's a bad thing to question things. He just got angrier. All the other angels never questioned God, why did I have to be so different? I told him the Morningstar asked questions too, so I can't be that different."

"And what did Micah say to that?" Gabriel could see it now, the old angel puffing up like an indignant hen, feathers bristling. Micah had always been a bit of a traditional type, easy to rile up. Gabriel should know, it had been most of his entertainment in his younger years. He'd have to have a word with the angel later.

Castiel shrugged sullenly, wing nearly jerking out of Gabriel's grasp. "He yelled that was the problem, that it was all Lucifer's fault heaven was in trouble, and God was gone and of course I would be on his side. That maybe I was to blame as well. Then he flew off in a huff. The others they just…stared at me."

The seraph turned his head, eyes searching Gabriel's own desperately. "What did he mean? What did I do? Is…is it my fault God doesn't talk to us anymore?"

Gabriel tried to calm the rage that threatened to overwhelm him. He would kick Micah back to the damn  _Cretaceous_ , make him wear a meat dress and dangle him in front of a T-Rex, for making Castiel think that.

Just because the old fool was freaking out didn't mean he had to take it out on the seraph.

Gabriel knew this day had been coming. Heaven had been uneasy for a while. An ominous tension had begun to seep through the angelic ranks, putting everyone on edge and tensions were running high. Unfortunately the culprits kept to themselves, leaving the rest of heaven to deal with the repercussions. What Gabriel wouldn't give to just slap a bit of sense into Michael and Lucifer.

Lucifer was angry; he hated the humans that were growing below on Earth. He hated that he had to serve them, grovel in the dirt at their feet. He was prideful, and stubborn and so very…well  _Lucifer_. This wasn't even the first time this had happened, ok so maybe the humans were new, but Lucifer throwing a tantrum definitely wasn't.  _No big deal_.

In fact Gabriel had seen Lucifer throw a very similar tantrum back in the day. Back when God had asked him to do something very similar to what was asked of him now, to love something.

In the beginning, God created the majority of angels, including the archangels. But there were only a few of them, and God decreed that more angels were needed, but he wasn't just going to poof them out of straight air anymore.

Technically, angels were genderless, but God introduced to them the  _concept_  of taking on an identity of their own choosing, male or female. Heck some liked to be both. Gabriel preferred taking on a male form most of the time, just because he got too distracted by his own breasts as a female and would never really get anything done.

Genders meant that now the angels could breed; in a sense at least. Fledglings were created by two angels molding small shards of grace together. God would then breathe life into that shape and voila, baby angel. It wasn't often done, it was a painful process and a lengthy one, fledglings took many, many years to mature, and most angels either weren't powerful enough to spare such a drain on their own grace, or just couldn't be bothered. Then there was the whole 'God has to approve to make it live' thing. Most angels didn't consider it worth the hassle.

It fell to the most powerful angels mostly to produce young ones when needed. Of course that meant the archangels. No-one really kept track of which fledgling was whose, after all, it wasn't so much as fathering an angel, as it was just  _donating_  a piece of you to make another sibling.

In fact, when Gabriel thought about it,  _all_  the younger angels were technically from one of the archangels, though they didn't know it. He thought back to the fledglings Castiel usually trained and studied with.

There was Uriel, stern, serious Uriel. He did have a sense of humor sometimes which could be misleading, but he was definitely one of Raphael's fledglings. Virgil, with his disciplined manners and skill with weapons, definitely Michael's. Little, loyal Rachel was probably Michael's as well. Balthazar, the lazy, snarky one, with a quick wit and sense of humor…well that one was  _definitely_  Gabriel's.

But Castiel? There was only one angel in all of heaven who could have produced a fledgling with such a bright grace and beautiful wings.

From the very beginning, the Morningstar didn't want fledglings. He didn't see why they were necessary, thinking that surely the number of angels in heaven were enough. Why should he sacrifice a part of himself to form something beneath him, then love it?

He and Michael constantly argued about it. But Lucifer eventually did obey, after a great deal of sulking.

He didn't produce many young ones, not like the other archangels had. Actually, Gabriel could only remember two others off the top of his head. There had been the whole disaster with Icarus, poor little thing had tumbled right out of the sky into a volcano when Lucifer hadn't been paying attention, and had never really been the same. Azazel had turned out marginally better, but Gabriel wouldn't exactly call it a success, that seraph gave him the heebie jeebies at the best of times.

Maybe it was for the best Castiel had been given to Gabriel to raise.

Castiel had been the last fledgling born, the last to feel the touch of God. God hadn't decreed any more fledglings to be born since Castiel's birth, in fact God hadn't really been heard from  _period_.

Some angels believed it was Lucifer's fault. That it was because he was questioning,  _defying_ , and this was their punishment; an absence of God.

Now with Lucifer and Michael fighting again, forcing tensions even higher, angels were even beginning to blame  _Castiel_  for God's absence, which was ridiculous. Gabriel put those gossipers down as soon as he heard them crop up, but Micah had apparently slipped through.

So what that Castiel was the youngest angel in all of heaven, the last to be touched by God? That didn't mean his existence had driven God away. So what if he was opinionated, always questioning and wondering? Just because Lucifer was a bit of a douche, didn't mean Castiel was one too.

Tensions between Michael and Lucifer had been worsening for centuries, because they were both  _immature buttheads_. They'd sort it out, they always did, they just had to be left to it, they'd done it before. The last thing heaven needed was to be blaming a young fledgling for something he had no part in.

It was bad enough Heaven had grown fearful of its prodigal son.

The leaves of the great tree rustled over head as Gabriel curled his dusky brown wings around his charge.

"Castiel. I'm going to tell you something and I want you to listen to me."

The seraph leant back into his embrace, nodding tightly. Gabriel breathed out slowly, pressing a chaste kiss to the bowed head in front of him.

"You are not a freak. You've done nothing wrong. Micah…well apart from being a massive  _jerk_ , is just scared. I think a lot of us are. So some of them look for an explanation for things, even if it doesn't make any sense and it's pretty stupid."

Those beautiful black wings were beginning to relax, and Gabriel combed them more firmly, kneading the tight muscles at the base of them.

"But what they forget is God doesn't  _make_ mistakes. You, and all of us, are just the way God made us and intended us to be. He intended for Lucifer to be a stubborn ass, for Michael to be a humorless stick in the mud, Raphael to be…well  _terrifying_ , and me to be damn handsome."

It had the desired effect, and Castiel chuckled slightly, shoulders relaxing. Gabriel wrapped his arms around him, hugging him. It had been many years since the seraph had been small enough to fit into his arms, and Gabriel felt a deep longing for those days again. Those simpler, and much more innocent, times.

"So you ignore crotchety old Micah. Cause that's just the way he's intended to be, and  _you're_  intended to be a curious little questioning weirdo," Gabriel grinned, mischievously giving Castiel's head an affectionate flick. "Have faith little brother."

**....**


	2. Chapter 2

Not a day went by when Michael and Lucifer  _weren't_  arguing. Worst of all, heaven was starting to divide as well. There were those that agreed with Lucifer, that it was unfair to cater to mankind, and those who were loyal to Michael, to God's will.

It really kicked off when in a fit of defiance, Lucifer wiped out the Neanderthals.

Heaven erupted in a clamor of raised voices and even a few physical fights. The cupids had all hidden themselves in the library, only occasionally emerging to shriek in shrill voices at the other angels to stop.

Gabriel watched the commotion with a frown.

It had been amusing at first, the archangel had even set up his own viewing spot, complete with pilfered future popcorn and red liquorices. He and Balthazar had thrown popcorn at a spluttering Zachariah, booed at Raphael and even dared to shout 'encore!' at a thunderous Metatron when he had finished a particularly long-winded speech.

But this had been ongoing for several centuries now, and Gabriel was tired of it. He knew it would pass eventually, Father wouldn't let Heaven dissolve into  _true_ chaos, this was just something they had to learn from obviously.

Still, Gabriel thought the Big Guy could hurry things up a bit.

Castiel fidgeted worriedly beside him, wings twitching nervously. "Gabriel, there has been talk that heaven is to go to war."

Gabriel rolled his eyes, shaking his head determinedly. "It won't come to that Castiel. They just have to get all this out of their systems. They'll calm down."

Raphael snorted to the other side of him, arms crossed and wings stiff. "You can't really believe that Gabriel." Her face was grim as she watched two angels beat and buffet each other with their wings, rolling along the floor and screeching. "We all know the inevitable is coming. Lucifer is not going to stand down this time. Heaven will divide, and we will go to war."

Gabriel laughed out loud. "Are you  _crazy_? This is Michael and Lucifer we're talking about here! Ok so they've never really seen eye to eye, but they're our brothers. They love each other. Lucifer wouldn't want that to happen and Michael would never allow it."

He winced as a particularly angry cherub swooped down from above, berating the two on the ground with shill words.

Gabriel shook his head, buffeting Castiel playfully with a wing. "Have faith brother, this'll work out."

**....**

How wrong he had been.

The skies roared with battle, heaven's pristine white hallways and pantheons stained red with blood. Angel clashed against angel, brother against sister. And all over the battle field swooped monstrous abominations, trailing black smoke in their wake as they descended on Michael's troops.

_Demons._

Any hope Gabriel had harbored of Lucifer redeeming himself had been destroyed with the first creation of such an abomination; twisting their Father's creation into something foul and evil.

Lucifer had gone too far.

Gabriel's wings were heavy as he spun, burying his blade into the throat of a male demon. The creature died in a burst of flame, hissing in outrage. The archangel's armor was dull and slick with blood, his feathers matted and stiff as he fought his way through swathes of the Damned. In front of him, Anael cut down a younger angel, the seraph exploding in a scream of white light.

Gabriel fought his way towards her, keeping his eyes away from the fallen form of yet another dead sibling.

Anael was no wet nurse or school teacher any longer. She was a commander now, and she bellowed out orders to the grim-faced youngsters behind her, wings a fiery arch over her head. She wore the light leather armor of the common foot-soldier, and Gabriel suddenly felt far too bright next to her in his own glimmering metal.

A demon lunged at him, but Gabriel dispatched it easily. Gritting his teeth, he focused on the demons surrounding Anael's garrison, and with a thought, burnt them all from existance. The task drained him, and he wobbled unsteadily on his feet, wings shivering. Anael looked around bewildered, before noticing the archangel.

"Gabriel!" Her lips flattened in a disapproving line. "You should be back with the General, not on the front line."

Now if that wasn't a hoot and a half, Raphael calling herself the  _General_. Like this was some sort of war game.

Gabriel shook his head, the dizziness dissipating. He had bought them some time, but more demons would descend again.

"Anael, I'm looking for Castiel. Please tell me you've seen him."

Castiel had wanted to join the fighting, to fight beside his brothers and sisters in glorious battle. Gabriel had wanted to stay out of it, keep Castiel safe with him and let the other idiots sort it out between themselves. But the archangel's best laid plans never seemed to work with the seraph, and Castiel had ignored him, joining the garrison despite Gabriel's protests.

Gabriel had seriously contemplated just hog-tying the insufferable youngster and stashing him away with the cowering cupids, just to keep him out of trouble.

Anael arched a delicate eyebrow. The angel had settled on a red-headed female form, and Gabriel spared a quick glance of appreciation that she still managed to look attractive, even bloody and smack bang in the middle of civil war.

"We've been a little busy if you can believe it Gabriel.  _Unfortunately_  I can't keep him under my wing 24/7, what with a  _war_  currently underway."

Gabriel's wings stiffened at her tone, and his eyes hardened. "Sarcasm doesn't suit you Anael."

The red-head sighed, wings twitching in annoyance, but she bowed her head in apology.

"I haven't seen him, Gabriel," her eyes softened briefly. "I understand you're worried, but Castiel isn't a fledgling anymore and wanted to fight. If he has been killed, it is for the greater goo-"

"Where did you assign him?" Gabriel demanded. He wasn't about to let Anael spout off more of that "die for a good cause" crap. He'd heard it enough from Raphael.

Anael cast a glance behind her at her garrison. "He was with Uriel. Usually I pair him with Balthazar but unfortunately that one fell in combat…"

Gabriel was already flying before she could finish.

He found Uriel in the middle of a battle. A group of Lucifer's angels and demons had laid siege to the library, and Uriel, along with a small group of loyal others, were pushing them back, keeping them at bay.

The demons scattered as Gabriel landed, black smoky shapes retreating to the main battle field where archangels were fewer.

Uriel yanked his blade free from the throat of another angel, and Gabriel averted his eyes from the light as the angel died. He caught a glimpse of indigo wings though, and his heart sank.  _Hael._

The young angel looked unimpressed as Gabriel mounted the marble steps towards him, wiping his blade nonchantly on one thigh.

"Where's Castiel?" Gabriel demanded. Uriel shrugged uninterestedly, sheathing his blade.

"Who knows? We were initially defending the left flank but fell back when Lucifer deployed several Nephilim there. I lost track of him there."

Cursing colorfully, Gabriel took off again.

He could hear the distant bellows of the Nephilim, and followed the sound. The giants were happily plowing through a line of angels, demons swooping down behind them to finish off any stragglers. Gabriel took a few of the giants down, freeing the diminished line of angels to begin fighting back, but the archangel still couldn't sense Castiel. He paused above the bloody battle, wings spread.

Unless….the seraph wasn't in heaven.

There was a great deal of fighting on earth as the battle spilled out of heaven, and Gabriel descended, wings stretched wide and straining as he pushed himself to the limit.

The valley had once been a peaceful place that a small tribe of humans had settled down in. Now the humans lay scattered across the battle field, dead eyes wide and disbelieving at their luck at having settled right beneath an angelic battlefield. A little distance away from the town, in a scorched and flattened field, Gabriel finally saw the tell tale glimmer of grace he was looking for.

_Castiel._

The young angel was on his knees, wings hanging limply from his shoulders. It looked like the seraph had been dragged to earth, breaking his wings in the headlong fall. He was unarmed and swayed drunkenly, head drooping. In front of him stood a woman clad in a simple blood splattered toga, a long deadly looking blade in one hand as she advanced on him.

Tucking his wings close to his body, Gabriel shot to the ground in a ball of fury. At the last minute he spread his wings, slamming into the earth feet first and sending a shockwave rippling along the rocky ground. His wings spread protectively, hiding the injured seraph from view from the woman, eyes angry slits.

The woman looked surprised for a moment, before hiding it behind a triumphant smirk. Her eyes were all white as she clicked her tongue at the furious archangel.

"Well well. Look what we have here, Gabriel the archangel. In the flesh." She tapped the blade against her hip. "Fancy seeing you here. Do you come to this war often?"

Gabriel didn't move from his protective crouch. "Lilith," he snarled. "Surprised Lucifer let you up off your back long enough to actually  _do_ something."

The demon's eyes darkened slightly, before she shrugged, a false smile in place. She cocked a hip, blade glinting in the dull light and Gabriel could see it was wet with blood.  _Castiel's blood._

"I wasn't gonna hurt the little darling.  _Much,_ " she cooed. "Lucifer just wants-"

"Kidnapping seraphs for his army now?" Gabriel interrupted, fury roiling in his stomach. "Wow guess that whole recruitment campaign isn't going so well huh?"

The demon tittered, flicking her blonde hair nonchantly. "Not just  _any_ seraph." Her black eyes glittered maliciously. "Just him. Castiel, the littlest angel. The very last to feel the touch of God."

There was an amused chuckle behind her, and the demon moved aside, purring happily as familiar figure came out of the shadows, running the edge of a wing over the female demon's arm.

"What Lilith means, is he's  _Lucifer's_  last."

Gabriel stiffened as Azazel came into view, face splattered with blood and smirking. The archangel shuffled back a few steps, feeling Castiel lean against his back with a muffled groan.

"Azazel," he growled. "Figured you'd be lurking around nearby. Surprised you stopped kissing Lucifer's ass long enough to actually show up."

Lucifer's general just smiled. "Always a pleasure Gabriel. But if you don't mind, I have business with Castiel. Lucifer has been patient with you, but the seraph is his and the dark Prince wants him  _back_."

Gabriel saw red, hand gripping his blade so hard he felt it cut his own flesh. "Castiel isn't  _his._  That self-righteous  _prick_  can go screw himself!" he shouted.

Azazel just smiled. "Now, now, Gabriel, don't be jealous. You took care of Castiel well, and Lucifer is grateful to you for that. But it's time you hand over my little brother."

Gabriel glared at the angel, feeling Castiel shakily grip his wing from behind. It dawned on him then, what the angel was actually implying, and Gabriel grimaced, veins thrumming with the urge to just smite everything in a ten mile radius.

"You sick delusional idiot," he spat. "What do you think you are? Lucifer's  _son_? That's blasphemy!"

Azazel laughed, wings jittering in amusement. "Oh Gabriel. Poor, poor thing. My father isn't missing, unlike yours.  _My_  father doesn't abandon his children." The angel shook his head pityingly. "Lucifer is a far greater Father than God could ever be."

It was the worst kind of blasphemy, and with a cry of disgust, Gabriel turned quickly, gathering Castiel in his arms. He wasn't a fledgling anymore, but the young angel grabbed at him like one, fingers digging desperately into the chinks of the archangel's armor as Gabriel gathered the seraph to him. Castiel's head rolled limply, eyes clouded with pain, and Gabriel straightened, turning to glare at the two creatures behind him.

Azazel looked angry now, wings puffing slightly in irritation. "Give me the seraph, Gabriel," he demanded. "I have no wish to fight you."

Gabriel snarled at him, wings bristling. "If you or any of your filthy demons ever puts a  _finger_ on Castiel…" His whole body was shaking with rage, his wings puffed and spreading wider aggressively. "…I swear to  _God Himself_ , I will end you. And that's a  _promise_."

Lilith lunged forward, but Gabriel was already gone, wings flapping down hard and pushing away from the earth. He flew hard and far, ignoring the enraged screeches behind him, ducking past other angels as they descended to join the fight and demons as they shot by.

The archangel landed on a quiet mountaintop, startling a herd of grazing sheep as he sank to the ground wearily, Castiel still held tightly in his arms.

The seraph was heavily wounded, and Gabriel held his charge close to his chest, focusing his energy on healing the bleeding wounds as he ran a shaking hand over Castiel's slack face.

Slowly life seemed to return back to the young angel, and he struggled briefly in Gabriel's arms, wings flapping uselessly. Gabriel pressed a kiss to his forehead, cradling the seraph close as he continued to heal the broken bones and cuts one by one.

Those blue eyes finally opened, and Gabriel smiled in crippling relief as they focused on him, blinking slowly.

"Gabriel?" Castiel asked.

The archangel smiled, not even caring that he was rocking a nearly full grown angel in his arms as if Castiel were still a little fledgling.

"Hey kiddo. Can't get rid of me that easily."

Castiel winced as he sat up more fully, hand rising to loosely grasp Gabriel's long feathers absently.

"What…I…" His brow furrowed and Castiel frowned. "Lilith. She surprised me in heaven and dragged me to earth. She kept saying something about Lucifer wanting me back…" The seraph looked up at him with confused eyes.

"She kept saying I was the last one…what does that mean?"

Gabriel brushed some dried blood off Castiel's cheek, eyes hard. There was no way Castiel needed to know just how messed up this whole situation was. For the first time, Gabriel found himself lying to his charge.

"Ignore her, kid, she's a demon. They lie. Probably wanted to throw you off your game." He looked down in mock-anger. "Which almost seemed to work by the way."

Castiel smiled slightly, mouth opening to say something when the earth suddenly trembled. Both angels glanced up at the sky with wide eyes.

The dark clouds that had gathered had erupted into a ball of bright flame; engulfing the sky in a terrifying wave of holy fire. The earth shook, roaring beneath their feet, and Castiel clung tighter to Gabriel, breathless and afraid.

"What's happening?" he shouted fearfully, struggling to be heard over the noise.

Gabriel watched the sky in horrified awe, the yellow shifting into a fierce bloody red. Angels were screaming and shouting, demons screeching in agony as the light blinded them, forcing them down to the earth. Lightening rippled across heaven, piercing through the clouds and ripping deep cracks in the scorched dirt.

"Gabriel!"

A terrible wind whipped across the mountain top, a vicious whirlwind heading for the jagged crack in the earth. Gabriel could see the wind capture demons as they attempted to escape, wrapping them inside its cyclone as it pushed them down into the dark abyss.

"Michael," Gabriel whispered.

He knew what was to come, and he quaked at it, terrified beyond words at what it meant. He hugged Castiel tighter to his chest, pushing the seraph's head into his neck as the young angel tried to turn his face to see.

"Don't look!" the archangel bellowed, wings snapped wide and straining, buffeted by the wind. "Don't you dare watch this!"

Castiel wrapped his arms around Gabriel's neck, his face tucked tightly into his brother's neck. Gabriel could feel the seraph sobbing against him, and could only press his cheek against Castiel's bowed head as he stared upwards, his own eyes blank and devastated. Both angels knew what was coming.

It was almost too blinding to watch, but Gabriel forced himself to. It was his punishment, for not taking Lucifer's threats seriously, for believing that everything would work out ok.

For having  _faith_.

The Morningstar's fall was not quick or subtle. He fell from Heaven in a blaze of fire; his voice screaming and carrying through all creation. Something in Gabriel died as he watched the flaming inferno that was Lucifer, slowly descend into the deep crack in the earth, trapped in that dark place with his demons.

Then, it was over. With a stuttering groan, the earth shifted back together, sealing Lucifer inside.

Gabriel sat there on the mountaintop, staring dumbly into space as Castiel cried against him, deep shuddering sobs shaking the angel's battered body.

**....**

It wasn't a hard decision. Leaving.

Nothing was the same. Michael was a different angel now. He was rarely seen outside his quarters and when he did emerge, he wandered the alabaster corridors with a faraway broken look, like he wasn't really there.

Raphael however was in her element, piecing back heaven into a way she deemed more efficient. With Michael a broken shell, heaven turned to her to lead them out of the smoking ruins, and the archangel took to her new role happily. There weren't nests anymore, instead there were garrisons and barracks, multitudes of armories lined with lethal and obscure weapons.

It had been a heartbreaking experience for Gabriel. His carefully constructed nest where he had spent so many peaceful moments with his little brother, was flattened to make room for a larger armory and barracks. It was like Gabriel didn't recognize anything anymore. Not even Castiel.

The little fledgling had finally grown up.

Under Raphael's new organization and strict training, he was a soldier. And soldiers did not question, or doubt, or fear. They did not ask for stories, pester older brothers for just one more glimpse of the ocean, swim with fish, or fly into a hurricane just for the fun of it. They did not curl up under the night sky, tracing the constellations and far away worlds with eyes glittering with awe, as their older brother murmured intricate stories and tall tales to them.

They did nothing but obey orders.

Gabriel had tried to dissuade him at first, that Castiel would just be another toy soldier in Raphael's master plan of remodeling heaven and her constant battle against Hell. But Castiel was a grown angel now, a far better strategist than Gabriel had ever been, and a warrior. He joined Anael's garrison, and Gabriel found himself alone for the first time in many a millennia.

He had no place in this new heaven. Raphael had tried to put him in change of his own garrison, but Gabriel refused. He wasn't made for war, and sending angels out as cannon-fodder to be ripped apart by demons and the like didn't sit well with him.

One day he just couldn't take it anymore, and Gabriel left heaven for good.

He sought solace and comfort by hiding amongst the pagans, crafting himself a new identity where no angel would think to look for him. It didn't take much power to convince the Nordic deity, Odin, that he was his son Loki. Old codger didn't tend to pay that much attention anyways, he was always off battling Ice Giants, drinking mead or pillaging wenches. Gabriel may have joined in on the pillaging wenches crusade a few times and mead drinking, but had found his real calling in being a Trickster.

Heaven forgot about him, and that suited him just fine. After a while, he too forgot about heaven, and forgot tiny fledglings with inky ebony wings and bright blue eyes.

**....**

The righteous man had been born.

By the time Gabriel heard about it he was somewhere in central Europe, terrorizing the British aristocracy. He'd forgotten what the child's birth really meant, until about four years later. Another child was born to the same family, a child that would one day bring about the apocalypse.

Gabriel heard through the grapevine about a yellow-eyed demon with plans for the child, and an unbidden image of burnt sepia wings on a long extinct plain flitted through his memory.  _Azazel._

Now if that wasn't a blast from the past.

He was all set to just ignore the whole thing and continue on his merry Trickster way, but he remembered everything now, and it ate at him. Azazel's words echoed through his head, " _My father doesn't abandon his children",_  and worried the fallen angel was back to make good on his threats on a certain seraph, Gabriel decided to see what the little prick was up to. Just to make sure.

The house Gabriel arrived at would seem normal enough at first glance to a human, but it might as well have had supernatural police tape stretched all around it blinking 'SHIT GOING DOWN', in huge flashing red lights. The place was under such heavy angelic guard it was ridiculous. Gabriel hadn't seen that much muscle and serious looking Raphael clones, since the birth of the original Mary's child.

Even more confusingly, the angels just stepped aside as Azazel approached, not batting an eye as the fallen angel moved past them smirking. Gabriel didn't dare move any closer in case he was detected, but watched from a distance as screams suddenly erupted from the house; the upper level bursting into flames. Still none of the angels moved.

There was a lot of shouting, and Gabriel jumped as the front door slammed open, a tiny boy struggling outside with a crying baby in his arms. The boy struggled down the wooden steps, eyes wild and frightened as the baby wailed into the night air.

Reaching the bottom, the boy's little legs gave out, and with a frightened yell, he toppled forward. Gabriel almost didn't dare look, expecting the baby to be squashed.

There was a flutter of wings however, and suddenly, Castiel was there.

Gabriel felt winded as he watched the seraph catch the boy gently, preventing the baby from dropping, then placed the boy back on his feet. The boy couldn't see him, and looked around confused for a moment, before a man was running out of the house and grabbed him from behind, carrying both boy and baby to safety.

Azazel sauntered down the steps slowly as the whole roof caught ablaze. He smirked at Castiel as he passed by, and Gabriel stiffened. The fallen angel made no move towards the seraph however, merely passing him by and disappearing in a flap of featherless wings and sulfur.

Castiel disappeared a moment later, as did the other angels, and Gabriel frowned, trying to process what he just saw. It seemed there was a larger game at play now.

What that was, he didn't know. Nor did he want to, but something in his gut told him something big was on its way.

**....**

It was stupid. He didn't even know what he'd been trying to do, he was just so _curious_. Sometimes he got confused over which part of him was what; if he was still Gabriel the archangel, or he really  _was_  a Trickster.

It was so easy to lose himself in it. And there was just something about the Winchesters. They reminded him so much of times long go, of two other brothers who used to love each other the same way.

He  _hated_  them for it.

The whole supernatural community was buzzing about them, Dean this, Sam that, and it got on his nerves. So he toyed with the Winchesters, taking out his frustration on them. It was fun to begin with, watching them struggle to figure out what he was. Then playing with Sam's perception of time and killing his brother over and over again. Ok so that had been pretty mean of him, but it had been so much  _fun_. Course, he had to hide the two chuckleheads from the other angels before embarking on that game. It was worth it though.

At the time he hadn't understood their role in the game; why they were so important. Then he heard about the siege on hell, and things started clicking together. Horrible things. It was like watching history repeat all over again.

He just wanted it over with. All of it. He heard that angels were taking vessels on earth, Castiel included. He heard that the Righteous man had been saved, by none other than Castiel himself and had even felt a tiny glimmer of pride. But even that small glimmer of pride wasn't enough to outweigh the fear.

War was coming again, and this time Gabriel wasn't sure there would be a victor.

**....**

That's it, he was done, screw  _everything_. He was going to find a deep dark hole to go crawl into, and just never,  _ever_  come out.

The water soaked his hair and clothes, dripping into his eyes as Gabriel watched the ring of holy fire die down, listening to the heavy boots of the Winchesters as they walked away, his pride stinging.

He kept his eyes on the ground, avoiding looking at the figure standing in front of him, but he could feel those intense eyes on him, waiting. Finally, as the last flame spluttered and died, Gabriel sighed into the silence.

"Do you remember, Castiel?" he asked wearily. "The fish? If I had known all the trouble that damn thing would cause, I would have let you step on it."

Castiel didn't move, but Gabriel heard the rustle of his wings as they shifted.

"Gabriel."

The fledgling was old now, his voice low and deep. Gabriel raised his eyes, something fluttering in his chest as he properly  _looked_. It was almost funny, Castiel had taken a vessel that was incredibly close to the form he manifested in heaven, dark hair and pale skin. Gabriel didn't know if he should laugh or cry as he stared back into oh-so-familiar eyes, Castiel's grace still shining through in an iridescent blue hue.

"You left." There was no accusation in Castiel's words, just stating a fact.

Gabriel shrugged helplessly, feeling like a young kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "I…I just couldn't. I still can't." The explanation didn't make much sense, and Gabriel sighed irritably, casting his eyes towards the ceiling where the water still dripped down. "I'm so tired of it all."

Castiel looked solemn, hands tucked into the pockets of a long beige trench coat. "A wise brother once told me, it is all God's plan. That everything is as He intended."

Gabriel smiled wryly, dragging his eyes back to look at the angel in front of him. "Maybe that brother wasn't so wise after all. Just a silly old fool who believed in fairytales."

Castiel's gaze didn't waver. "That same wise brother also told me to have faith. So I do. Sometimes that's all I have."

Gabriel shook his head slowly. "I don't have faith anymore Castiel. God left us, Lucifer left us, heck even  _I_ left."

Something flickered in those blue eyes, and Castiel's jaw clenched. "Gabriel. I cannot put into words the pain I felt when you left. Many presumed you dead, and mourned you as such."

Gabriel winced at that, but Castiel just continued talking.

"I was…perhaps I still am,  _angry_ , that you could do such a thing. Not just to heaven, but, to me."

Yeah well, cowardice thy name is Gabriel. "You didn't need me anymore kiddo," he said lightly, regretting the nickname as soon as it escaped his lips.

_You grew up kid. I couldn't bear it._

Castiel took a step forward, and Gabriel could see his wings then, manifesting and arching towards him slightly. "I will always need you brother. And I used to think you needed me too."

There was a lump in his throat, and Gabriel ducked his head, blinking furiously. Castiel didn't comment on his sudden silence, eyes still trained on the archangel's bowed head.

"Lucifer is free, Gabriel," Castiel murmured. "If not stopped, he will destroy mankind."

Gabriel managed to get himself back under control, and he swallowed hard. "Maybe that's what God intended."

Castiel glared at him, and Gabriel felt like laughing, remembering how the angel used to look at him like that, before…well before. "You know that it is not. Mankind is worth saving."

Gabriel smirked, crossing his arms, feeling his Trickster mask sliding back into place. "Not in my experience. Sure you're not just talking about Dean-o? I mean, I know the man is like sex on bowed legs, but  _really_  Castiel-"

"It's not just Dean," Castiel interrupted. "Though I will not deny I care for him a great deal. This is about  _all_  of them, Gabriel. Lucifer will destroy the earth in a scourge of fire. Nothing will remain."

That would suck. No more candy. Or naked ladies.  _Damn._  Gabriel rolled his eyes, shrugging his shoulders helplessly.

"So what do you want me to do?" He allowed his wings to finally emerge, joints creaking and snapping as he stretched them. He had hidden them for so long, they felt alien to him. "I don't know if you've noticed, but Heaven is one huge mess. Raphael would probably just kill me the moment I set foot in her domain."

Castiel smiled slightly at him, just a tiny quirk at the corner of his mouth.

Gabriel felt like he didn't know this angel; an adult Castiel. He was quieter, more serious than the mischievous fledgling that had shared Gabriel's nest and heart. Did this Castiel still love the Ocean? Did he still whisper to dragonflies, or watch the stars and remember the stories Gabriel used tell him?

Gabriel didn't know. But Father, did he want to.

"I just ask that you have faith, Gabriel. That you will help us and when the day comes…you will fight."

Gabriel hesitated, unsure. Fight with the Winchesters?  _For_  them? There was only so much an angel could take. It would be so much easier to just go back to his simple life of the Trickster, ignoring heaven's juvenile dispute.

But that hadn't exactly worked the last time he tried the whole 'ignore it until it goes away' tactic. Maybe Castiel was right. He couldn't sit out on this one again. Not when he could actually  _do_ something this time around. Maybe even slap some sense into Lucifer that was several million years overdue.

"I can't promise anything on the faith front Castiel but…" Gabriel sighed.  _So much for hiding._ "I'll help you, and when the day comes…."

Gabriel smiled, and though it was tired, and probably broken, he could see the spark of hope leap in those blue eyes. "I'll fight for  _you_."

Gabriel's wings were arching forward tentatively, nervously. Castiel watched them for a moment, before his own answered, curling forward. Gabriel felt close to hysterics as the younger angel opened his arms, walking forward with look of uncertainty on his face, as if he wasn't sure he was allowed to do this.

_Always, Castiel._

Gabriel grabbed him fiercely, arms wrapping around him desperately. Castiel was taller than him now, which made him chuckle slightly, and after initially freezing, Castiel wrapped his own arms around the archangel, relaxing into his embrace.

Gabriel's wings shuddered happily, brushing against Castiel's lovingly. Those ebony wings he had groomed for so long were scarred now, singed by the flames of hell, and Gabriel trailed his long feathers along their edges.

"I missed you, Gabriel," Castiel murmured quietly, almost shyly against his shoulder. Like it was an admission of weakness.

Gabriel blinked his eyes furiously, wrapping the two of them in his wings tightly. "I missed you too, kiddo. You have no idea how much."

Azazel had been wrong. Castiel wasn't Lucifer's.

Castiel was  _his_ , and Gabriel wasn't going to leave his fledgling again.

**....**


End file.
